TOPSHAM

It hasn’t been the easiest of seasons for Highland Green in American Legion Zone II play. The Topsham team has won four games this year, two of which have come by way of forfeit by Andy Valley, which folded soon after the start of the season due to a low number of players.

On Saturday, things didn’t seem to get any easier for Highland Green, dropping both games in the doubleheader by a 10-run Mercy Rule to Gardiner, 14-4 and 14- 2.

“We fall down early and we’re not the type of team that has the offense that can come charging back,” head coach Bob Neron said. “We have to play good defense. We can’t walk guys and give teams four, five outs. That’s been our problem. We fall behind early in the game and it’s hard to come back. Let’s face it, if you’re down five runs you’re not going to steal and bunt your way back into it.”

In game one the first inning was all it took to decide the fate of the home team. Gardiner got a hold of starting pitcher Brendan Emmons early as the first three batters reached and scored, while four more found their cleats touching home, all of which played a part of a seven-run inning. However, the inning’s offense was done on only three hits, with three errors aiding to the early lead.

Adam Sirois replaced Emmons at the start of the second inning, keeping Gardiner (7-5) off the scoreboard before his team came to bat and chipped away at the deficit, scoring twice to make it 7-2. Dylan Earl-Johnson led off with a single and advanced on a Sirois single, while later scoring on a Haven Cutko double to deep right field. Sirois also scored on the double.

The visitors went on the attack again in the third, plating four more runs and blowing the game wide open at 11-2. Jariah Caissie, Kyle Fletcher and Dalton Therrien strung together the three Gardiner hits in the inning, while Alex Curtis’ sacrifice-fly allowed Therrien to score.

“This summer we haven’t pitched well and haven’t played good defense,” Neron said. “It’s the same old song. You fall behind early, you have to hit your way back into it and we’re giving them way too many extra outs and scoring opportunities. It seems that whenever we walk someone, we make an error behind it and then they get a hit and it kind of snowballs.”

Four more runs in the fourth gave Gardiner a 14-3 lead, with Highland Green (4-9) tacking on one more run in the third and another in the fourth, but was unable to keep the offense going to halt the chance of a Mercy Rule contest.

Kevin Carter was perfect at the plate in the opener, going 3-for-3 with a double, while Sirois and Cutko both went 1-for-2.

Game two was much of the same, but did not become damaging until the latter part of the matchup. The first seven Gardiner hitters went to the plate in the first, with three of them crossing home on two hits and an error. Fletcher led off with a single down the rightfield line, while Curtis reached safely on a droppedthird strike call accompanied with a throwing error. He later scored on a Jake Martin single to right.

Highland Green battled in the bottom half, making it a one-run game. Cam Cox went the opposite way for a lead-off single, but was picked off at second after advancing on a wild pitch. Jacob O’Neill and Carter walked, while a Reilly Kons single and an error later allowed both of them to score. However, the bats remained quiet from that point forward, with Emmons being the only base runner to get to second base the rest of the way — singling and advancing on a passed ball in the fourth.

After plating two more runs in the second, Gardiner exploded for five more in the third and four more in the fifth, which appeared to deflate the tires of the hosts. Both innings saw a com- bined 11 hits scattered across the field, with Ben Allen picking up a single and a double in those two innings, as well as a pair of hits from Brady Dion and Martin.

Fletcher had five hits on the day for the visitors, while teammates Therrien and Jake Bannister each had four.

“We still have a chance,” Neron said. “If we can win our next four games I think we can be one of the top eight. But, I don’t think winning two and losing two will get us there. They’re not rolling over and dying. They’re not out there trying to make errors and walk guys, it’s just is what it is.”

Highland Green’s next game will come on Thursday, when it hosts Smith Tobey Post 21 at 5:45 p.m.

Gardiner 14,
Highland Green 4

Game 1
At Mt. Ararat High School in Topsham Gardiner — 704 30 — 14-10-0
High. Green — 021 10 — 4 – 7-4
Ben Allen and Jake Bannister; Brendan Emmons, Adam Sirois (2), Cam
Cox (3), Kevin Carter (5) and Reilly
Kons.
Doubles — (G) Kyle Fletcher, Dalton
Therrien; (HG) Kevin Carter, Haven
Cutko.
Repeat hitters — (G) Kyle Fletcher,
Dalton Therrien, Jake Bannister; (HG)
Kevin Carter (3).
Records — Gardiner 6-4, Highland
Green 4-8.

Gardiner 14,
Highland Green 2

Game 2
At Mt. Ararat High School in Topsham Gardiner — 325 04 — 14-17-1
High. Green — 200 00 — 2 – 4- 2
Brady Smith and Jake Bannister;
Jacob O’Neill, Harper Moutal (3) and
Cam Cox.
Doubles — (G) Kyle Fletcher, Dalton
Therrien, Ben Allen.
Repeat hitters — (G) Kyle Fletcher
(3), Dalton Therrien, Alex Curtis,
Brady Dion, Jake Martin, Jake Bannister. Records — Gardiner 7-4, Highland
Green 4-9.
Up next for Highland Green —
Thursday at home against Smith-
Tobey Post 21, 5:30 p.m.